


holding hands, helping hands

by redkings



Category: Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)
Genre: Fluff, Gen, M/M, it isn't tomohaji focused but i guess i just couldn't Not write them
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-22
Updated: 2019-08-22
Packaged: 2020-09-23 18:42:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,115
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20344882
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/redkings/pseuds/redkings
Summary: It isn't enough to be holding just two of his kids' hands; he wants to hold them all, wants to cradle them in his arms and tell them how proud he is of them.





	holding hands, helping hands

The thing Mitsuru likes most about holding Hajime's hands is that he can always expect them to be softer than anything he's ever felt. He takes one gently, ever so gently, in his own calloused hands and grins at his unit mate.

"Hajime-chan, it's soft! Your hand is so soft!"

"Eh?" Hajime jumps, startled by the sudden grasping of his hand. His cheeks turn the most delicate shade of pink at the compliment, and Mitsuru can't help but beam. "A-are they? I only use lilac lotion, nothing special…"

"It _ is _ special, though, Hajime-chan!" Mitsuru protests, and he presses his palm against Hajime's. "Feel mine! Isn't it all rough and hard?"

Hajime feels Mitsuru's hand, pushes back against it and rubs their skin together, more seriously than this silly scenario calls for. "You're right… Mitsuru-kun, are you alright? Would you like to borrow some of my lotion sometime?"

Mitsuru pulls his hand away and thinks hard, harder than he needs to. After careful deliberation, he grins at Hajime. "Yeah! Because then I can smell like you, Hajime-chan!"

As Hajime's cheeks grow deep in a blush, Mitsuru takes his hands in his again, feeling warm and cared for in the softness of his skin.

—

When Tomoya's hands are holding his, Hajime feels like he's in the safest place he could possibly be. Being pulled along on an outing with him, Hajime squeezes his hand, a small display of his affection for the other boy.

Tomoya stops briefly, glancing back at Hajime in concern. "You okay, Hajime? Am I walking too fast for you?"

"Oh, no, not at all!" Hajime chirps, a little too quickly. He feels embarrassed suddenly, cheeks dusting with pink as he looks at his feet. "I was just thinking about...how much I love when you hold my hand, is all."

"Oh," Tomoya says simply. His face is a little red, and he glances away sheepishly. "Well...I like holding your hand. I like knowing you're close by."

Warmth blossoms in Hajime's chest as his head snaps back up to watch Tomoya carefully, to see the look of quiet bashfulness on his face. "I feel the same way, Tomoya-kun," he says just as quietly, unable to stop his smile from spreading over his face. "I want to be close to you always."

Tomoya meets his eyes then, and he returns his smile with just as much affection as he was given. He seems to remember where they are, suddenly, and clears his throat, his cheeks becoming rosy in a way that Hajime can tell is because of actual embarrassment from sharing intimate feelings in the street, surrounded by strangers. "We should, uh… we should keep walking, probably, huh?"

"Probably," Hajime replies with a giggle, and they start off again. This time, it's Tomoya who squeezes his hand, a physical reminder that he'll always be on Hajime's side.

—

Tomoya looks at Nazuna's hands and sees the hands of a leader. They're small, sure, but they're strong, and they've guided him and the rest of Ra*bits through some of the toughest times they've faced.

"Are you okay, Tomochin?" Nazuna's voice breaks Tomoya out of his thoughts, and Tomoya shakes his head and focuses his eyes on him. "You looked a little like you were daydreaming."

"I'm okay, Niichan," Tomoya replies, giving Nazuna a warm smile. "Sorry, but could you go over those steps again? I wasn't paying attention."

Nazuna sighs and shakes his head, but returns Tomoya's smile with a bright grin of his own. "You got it, Tomochin."

As he goes through the motions again, Tomoya watches Nazuna's hands. The way he spreads his arms out as he dances, the little waves he gives as he hops around the classroom, Tomoya sees it all. He knows that Hajime and Mitsuru are sitting next to him, watching everything closely too, but for Tomoya, it feels...different. He'll be in Nazuna's position in less than a year's time, and he knows he's got to watch their leader more intensely than anyone else. 

At the end of the lesson, after everyone's packed up to leave, Nazuna stands at the door, hands stretched with his palms up. Hajime and Mitsuru are out the door before Tomoya is, both of them giving Nazuna double high fives with bright smiles on their faces, but after Tomoya has given his, Nazuna catches his hands, giving them a firm squeeze.

"You're gonna be just fine, Tomochin," he says in a firm voice, eyes clear as he looks straight into Tomoya's. "You've got a good head on your shoulders and you've got the heart Ra*bits is gonna need. But don't get too caught up in the future, okay?" Nazuna lets go of Tomoya's hands and ruffles his hair. "We need you here and now too!"

Tomoya laughs, leaning into the feeling of Nazuna's hand on his head, and he grins at his beloved leader. "Thanks, Niichan. I'm gonna keep doing my best!"

Nazuna nods and returns Tomoya's smile. "I know you will."

—

Nazuna wishes he had just one more hand, so he could be holding all three of them at once. It isn't about him wanting to guide them through life (he knows they're young, but he knows they need to be independent and grow on their own, too), but rather a want to feel close to them as much and as often as he can. 

He's being pulled along by Mitsuru, who's intent on finding the new bakery he discovered the other day, and in turn, Nazuna is pulling Hajime by his hand, while Tomoya brings up the rear. They're all giggling and smiling, even Tomoya, who can barely keep up with this chain of linked hands, and they keep stumbling, one after the other, because Mitsuru cannot _ wait _ to share sweets and bread with his unit mates and friends.

"Mitsuru-chin, slow _ down _ !" Nazuna calls between laughs, though he doesn't really mean it, not in this context anyway. He wishes Mitsuru would change his pace, just for a second, because he doesn't want this moment — doesn't want this _ day _ — to end, not just yet.

"Yeah, Mitsuru, listen to Niichan!" Tomoya calls from the back, and Nazuna wishes he could be holding Tomoya's hand right now, too. It isn't enough to be holding just two of his kids' hands; he wants to hold them all, wants to cradle them in his arms and tell them how proud he is of them.

But he can't do that, not right now. He will later, every day, for the rest of his life. But for now, Nazuna and his group of strong, brave rabbits have a bakery to find and each other's hands to hold.

**Author's Note:**

> so i haven't written anything in a good year, and i've. never written ra*bits before, and this is very rushed, so i'm kind of nervous about posting this, but. ra*bits means so much to me, i couldn't not write at least one thing for them for ra*bits week.
> 
> but anyway uhhh yeah! stan talent, stan ra*bits!


End file.
